Where are you originally from? I was raised in Wayland, south of Rochester.

How long have you lived here? I moved here in 2001.

Education: I am a graduate of Wayland Central School and have a degree from Paul Smith’s College in travel and tourism.

In a few words, describe your business:OhGoodyGoody.com is a place to buy gift certificates with our focus being on unique locally owned independent businesses.

Number of employees:I am a sole proprietor but I could not do this on my own. I subcontract out certain things such as the accounting, certain code writing for the site, marketing and web design to my husband who is a website developer.

How long have you owned it?We officially opened on June 12.

What did you do before becoming a business owner? I was living in Alexandria, Va., and working as a flight attendant for American Airlines. I felt this strong urge to move back toward home. So I sold my house, moved to Camillus in August 2001 and continued working as a flight attendant by commuting to New York City, and then 9-11 happened. It became very clear to me that the timing of my move was perfect, and I was where I needed to be when my world turned upside down.

What led you to open the business? I grew up in a family-owned business and had always dreamed of having my own business. In 2007, I had a life-changing accident at work. For a year, I sat on the couch with a 24/7 headache not moving much. I had a long time to think about what I was going to do with my life.

How did your business get its name? In 2003, I married my husband, Michael, a web designer. One of his first questions was, “Don’t you want a website?” I thought about names for months. Since I didn’t have any incentive to start a business, I just came up with the name to pacify him... OhGoodyGoody.com.

We bought it spelled a couple of different ways and sat on it for two years. Then the accident happened and the name matched my desire and ideas to do something that would help the local merchants, the economy and maybe I could even make a living at it. Coincidence? I believe everything happens for a reason.

What’s the hardest part of running the business?Every aspect of the business is new to me: from the concept itself to QuickBooks to graphic design. I seemed to have taken the crash course and jumped in with both feet. I have been very fortunate to have several mentors and many business owners in the community who have generously helped me get on the right track by lending their advice on legal matters, marketing, right down to an office location.

What’s the nicest thing a customer has said to you? ”I need to buy gifts for my 31 employees. Can you handle that for me?” from a local businessman.

Is there someone who has helped you out?An easier question would be “Is there anyone who hasn’t helped me out?” My husband created and maintains the site. Syracuse University marketing students have done a case study on OhGoodyGoody.com. I have had the help of students from the SU Law Clinic for two years. I have been guided by mentors at StartUp NY, the WISE Center, SBDC. I have an advisory board of four knowledgeable, successful and creative women.

What is the most unexpected aspect of your business?I was really surprised when ICJ Cookies wanted to name a cookie “OhGoodyGoody!” and by the way, it is their best seller. I could never imagine that one day there would be a cookie, a candle, chocolates and coffee named “OhGoodyGoody!” That was not in the business plan.

Is there a bigger philosophy behind the idea of the store?Beyond making it easy for people to buy local online, we also have a philanthropic/charitable giving category. Ted Whalen, a SU marketing professor, suggested giving customers the option of making a donation in someone’s name instead of buying a gift for them. We have currently teamed up with Positively Pink Packages. That philosophy lead to Positively Pink Packages receiving a portion of our proceeds from each merchant who participated in our wine and chocolate pairing event, in Aurora, last summer.